Taking a Chance

Written for Rebecca-Cenni Leventhal, CEO and Founder, Atrium

In Atrium's early years, my days were spent building relationships with clients and my nights were spent baking for them. 🍪

At that point, I was grateful to have any clients at all! Keeping them constantly supplied with sweets was my way of saying, "thanks for taking a chance on me." I was in the kitchen so much I didn't know if I was running a staffing agency or a bakery.

Then the tragedy of 9/11 happened and baking came to mean something more.

In the aftermath of the attacks, I didn't know what to do with myself. Like many, I felt helpless.

So I gravitated toward the familiar and the comfortable; I baked. And Carrie Morey, then Atrium's temp recruiter, joined me.

In addition to crinkle, Linzer, and chocolate chip cookies, Carrie and I baked biscuits. As we sifted together flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt, Carrie and I talked about everything: our families, our work, our hopes and fears for the future. We talked about the importance of community, giving back to our clients, and chasing our dreams.

A few months later, Carrie came to me with some news. She had been inspired by our conversations and response from our clients, she realized her true purpose. She was leaving Atrium to start her own company baking biscuits. At that moment, even though I knew Atrium was losing one of our star coworkers, I couldn't have been happier for her.

Today, Carrie's company Callie's Hot Little Biscuit is one of the largest, most successful biscuit companies in the country!

The lesson? Live life now. Give back, inspire others, and go after what you want. The result will be sweet (or savory, depending on how you like your biscuits.)